


A Moment More Precious than a Jewel

by LooneyLlama



Category: Mumintroll | Moomins Series - Tove Jansson, 楽しいムーミン一家 | Moomin (Anime 1990)
Genre: Also I gave Stinky a purpose for being in the story, Basically I made this episode even gayer, First Kiss, Growing Up, Heteronormativity, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Seriously why was he even in the original episode?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2020-12-19
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:14:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,731
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28172994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LooneyLlama/pseuds/LooneyLlama
Summary: Moomin's mysterious dream led him behind the waterfall, but what he was looking for was beside him all along.Divergence from the 1990's episode "The Fabulous Emerald."
Relationships: Muminmamman | Moominmamma & Mumintrollet | Moomintroll, Muminpappan | Moominpappa & Mumintrollet | Moomintroll, Mumintrollet | Moomintroll & Snorkfröken | The Snork Maiden, Mumintrollet | Moomintroll/Snusmumriken | Snufkin
Comments: 10
Kudos: 47





	A Moment More Precious than a Jewel

“Oh, where am I?”

Moomin found himself in an unfamiliar forest, shrouded in mist. A strange voice echoed through the trees. 

_Go further, Moomin. Go further._

With nothing better to do, Moomin obeyed. He walked past dozens of the bare, skeletal-looking trees, and yet it seemed to take no time at all. Before long, he came across a roaring waterfall. 

_Behind this waterfall, you will find what you are looking for._

Moomin frowned. “I’m not looking for anything.” 

_Behind the waterfall..._

“What will I find there?” He asked the voice. When no response came, Moomin shrugged and began picking his way across the slippery rocks. He hadn’t made it far when his paws shot out from under him, and he was falling down, slowly disappearing into the spray of the waterfall. 

And then he woke up. 

Blinking in the early morning light, Moomin realized it had just been a dream. He rubbed his eyes and climbed out of bed, heading for the ladder hanging outside his window. Naturally, he had to go tell Snufkin. 

“Sounds like a strange dream” the vagabond said, after Moomin had finished describing the mysterious voice and the waterfall. 

The troll nodded. “I’ve dreamt many times that I’m falling, or flying just by waving my arms, or that I can’t run, but I’ve never been told that I’m looking for something!”

“And you’re quite sure that you’re not?”

Moomin wrinkled his brow, thinking hard. “I’ve thought and thought about it, but no, I’m not looking for anything.” 

“Very odd,” Snufkin murmured. “Have you ever seen that waterfall?”

“No, I haven’t. But I’ve heard about a waterfall, one that you can walk behind.”

“Who told you about it?

Moomin’s voice dropped to a whisper as he met his friend’s eyes. “You did.” 

Snufkin looked startled. “Huh? I did?”

“Yes.” Of course, that must have been what his dream meant: he was to go on an adventure with Snufkin! Moomin’s tail began flicking back and forth excitedly. 

After a moment’s thought, Snufkin replied, “yes, I do know a waterfall like that.”

“You said, in the northern part of the Lonely Mountains,” Moomin offered eagerly. 

“That’s right. I must have told you about it.” 

“Would you take me there, Snufkin? For some reason, I can’t get this dream out of my mind.” 

“It was only a dream,” he said gently, but the troll was undeterred. 

“But there’s something important about it. You will take me there, won’t you?”

Moomin phrased the request as a question, but he said it more like a statement. Like it was inevitable. 

Sure enough, the two boys set out early the next morning for the Lonely Mountains. They didn’t say much as they walked; Moomin could think of plenty of things to talk about, of course, but he knew that Snufkin didn’t always appreciate a lot of chatter. It had been hard when he was younger, learning when to keep his words to himself, but now he felt entirely comfortable in the silence. He took the time to appreciate how the dawn light made dewdrops glitter in the grass, listened to the morning birdsong, and enjoyed the calm presence of his best friend by his side. 

After a couple of hours, however, Moomin couldn’t help but comment, “it’s further than I thought.”

A teasing smile appeared on Snufkin’s face, and he stopped to let Moomin catch up. “Are you tired?” 

“A bit.”

“Want to rest?”

Huffing and puffing, Moomin replied, “no, I’m all right. How about you?”

“I like walking.” 

Even having said that, however, the boys soon decided to stop and have their picnic lunch. As they ate, Moomin couldn’t help but ask, “do you think we’ll find it, Snufkin?”

“I wouldn’t count on it. It was only a dream, you know.” With that, Snufkin took another bite of his apple. 

“I suppose so,” Moomin sighed. Still, it was hard not to get his hopes up. They continued following the stream uphill; more than once, the troll found that his short legs couldn’t reach the next foothold in the rock, and Snufkin had to grab his paws and pull him up. It was difficult, but the sound of roaring water spurred them on. Soon enough, they boys were face to face with an enormous wall of water. 

“This is it!” Moomin shouted. “This is exactly the waterfall I saw in my dream!”

“But the thing is, Moomin, you have no idea what you’re looking for.” 

“No, but we’ll know it when we see it.” He danced in place, unable to keep his paws still. If the waterfall from his dream was real, then surely whatever he was looking for was real as well. It would be something right out of a dream, he bet. Perhaps a pair of golden wings that would let him soar above the clouds! 

As they got close to the ledge leading behind the waterfall, however, Moomin hesitated. Between the dense wall of water and the thick rock of the cliff, it was nearly as dark as a winter night. Plus, he could still remember how he slipped in his dream, and the long fall down to the water below. 

“It’s a bit scary,” Moomin mumbled. 

Snufkin gently took his paw. “Don’t worry, we’ll be fine, so long as we’re careful.” With that, the vagabond led him into the passage, pointing out the gaps in the rock that Moomin couldn’t see, and keeping a firm hold on his paw to guide him along. 

“It looks as if we should be right behind the waterfall by now,” Snufkin said. They paused and looked around, but there was nothing but mist and rock. 

“Can’t see anything special.”

“Let’s go a bit further, then.”

Something up ahead caught Moomin’s eye, and he scrambled to get a better look. 

“What’s that green glow?” 

As they got closer, Snufkin spotted the source: a green crystal nearly the size of his head sitting on the ground. He picked it up with both paws and examined it carefully. “It must be an emerald.”

Moomin placed his own paws on the gem to get a better look. “It’s beautiful.”

“So you must have been looking for this emerald, Moomin.” 

“No, I wasn’t.” The troll stared at the gem, his ears drooping. It was a very pretty emerald, sure, but it was still just a rock—hardly something special enough to be worth dreaming about. 

“Well, what else could it have been?” Snufkin wondered. 

Moomin looked up from the emerald, and his mouth dropped open. The glow from the emerald put sparkles in Snufkin’s eyes, like strange green stars on a dark brown sky. All of the water droplets caught in the boy’s hair and on his clothes glittered green as well, looking like dozens of tinier emeralds. It was if he were some sort of ethereal being, even more beautiful than the water nymph had been. Moomin felt a blush spread over his face, and he wanted to slap himself. What was he thinking—this was Snufkin, for the Booble’s sake! 

Snufkin, who listened to his dreams and took even his silliest idea seriously. 

Snufkin, who taught him to enjoy the peace of nature and to appreciate the smallest moments. 

Snufkin, who held his paw when he was afraid and guided him safely through every adventure. 

Moomin slid his paws over the emerald until they covered Snufkin’s, and leaned in closer. He moved slowly, but there was no hesitation, no fear in his actions. It felt completely and utterly right, like it was the most natural thing in the world. Like it was inevitable. 

Finally, his snout just barely brushed the tip of Snufkin’s nose, sending a shiver up his spine. After a terrifying moment of stillness, Snufkin began nuzzling back. He angled his face up just a tad, and Moomin felt Snufkin’s mouth press against his snout over and over again, sending his heart fluttering every single time. It felt like a dream. 

“Well, well, WELL!” 

And if kissing Snufkin was a dream, then Stinky’s voice was the worst wake-up call in the world. Moomin immediately jumped back, putting as much distance between himself and Snufkin as was possible in the tiny grotto. 

“I gotta say, I always thought there was something weird going on with you two!” Stinky folded his arms and shot them a nasty smirk. 

Snufkin frowned back at him. “That was mean, Stinky. You shouldn’t scare people, especially not in a dangerous place like this.” 

“Maybe you shouldn’t be smooching in here then!” He punctuated the sentence with a sloppy kissing noise. 

Ignoring the creep, Snufkin asked, “Moomin, are you all right?” 

“Of course not!” Stinky interjected. “Moomin knows he’s in big trouble! What do you think Snorkmaiden will say about when she finds out?” 

“Me and Snorkmaiden aren’t dating for real! We’ve never said that we are!” Moomin protested. 

“Are you sure she knows that?” 

Instead of replying, Moomin only gulped. 

Seeing his distress, Stinky gleefully continued. “How about Moominpappa and Moominmamma? You really think they’re going to approve of this?”

“We don’t need anybody’s approval.” Snufkin shifted the emerald to fit under his arm, and reached for Moomin’s paw. 

Moomin didn’t reach back. Without even looking at Snufkin, he begged, “please, don’t tell anyone about this, Stinky.” 

“Oh, don’t worry, I’m willing to keep my mouth shut...” he winked at the boys. “For the price of one big fat emerald.” 

“But that’s blackmail!” Snufkin objected. 

“I prefer to think of it as a high-stakes deal. Now, are you going to hand it over, or what?” 

“Please just give him the emerald, Snufkin,” Moomin whispered, his eyes welling up. He could feel Snufkin staring at him, so he screwed up his face, desperately trying to keep the tears at bay. 

Wordlessly, Snufkin turned to Stinky and handed him the emerald. 

“There we go! Your secret’s safe with me,” he cackled as he bounded away. After a moment, Snufkin started making his way out of the grotto, too, with Moomin silently following. The two boys made an effort not to touch even accidentally as they trudged back to Moominvalley. As soon as the red roof of the Moominhouse was in sight, Moomin split off from Snufkin and ran home without saying goodbye. He burst through the door and made a beeline for his room, ignoring Moominpappa’s greeting. All he wanted to do was curl up into a ball and cry for awhile. Unfortunately, he ran smack into Moominmamma on the landing. 

“My goodness, Moomin, what’s the matter?”

Moomin opened his mouth to reply, but quickly snapped it shut again. He wanted so badly to confide in his mother, to let her wrap him up in a hug and tell him everything was all right, but Stinky’s taunts still echoed in his ears. 

“I...I don’t want to talk about it, Mamma.” 

With that, he brushed past her and headed for his room. Once the door was firmly shut, Moomin’s energy drained out, and he slumped onto his bed. 

“I can’t tell you, Mamma,” he whispered into his pillow. “I’m sorry.” 

———————

The next day, Moomin, Little My, Snorkmaiden, and Sniff decided to go to the beach. Moomin didn’t invite Snufkin, and Snufkin didn’t ask to come along. Snorkmaiden was as chipper as ever as they walked down the path. “Oh, that sunshine feels wonderful!” 

“Mm,” Moomin grunted. He could barely look her in the eye. 

“It looks like there’s a few clouds coming over the mountains, though. Do you think it’ll rain later, Moomin?”

“Don’t know.” He brushed past her and dove for the ocean, hoping the quiet depths could soothe the raging whirlwind in his head. Unfortunately, Snorkmaiden waded in right after him. With a contented sigh, she flopped onto her back to float on the waves. Moomin bobbed up next to her. 

“Hey, Snorkmaiden? What...what exactly are we?” 

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

Moomin sighed heavily. “Me and you. What are we together?” 

“Why, I’m a princess, and you’re my brave knight!” she giggled. “Isn’t that right?” 

“No,” he shook his head slowly. “No, I mean outside of our play-acting.”

She paused, fixing her fringe. “Hmm, I guess I’ve never really thought about it. Does it matter?”

Before Moomin could think of a response, a loud crack of thunder echoed through the valley. 

“Oh!” Snorkmaiden exclaimed. 

Moomin frowned up at the clouds. “I think it’s going to rain.”

“Maybe we should shelter in the cave.” 

Even as Snorkmaiden made the suggestion, however, the clouds were already dropping their heavy burden on the children. Hundreds of ice crystals began pummeling down onto their heads. 

“Oh no, it’s hailstones!”

The four made a mad dash for the safety of the cave. Rubbing at their bruises, they resolved to wait out the storm. Before very long, the clouds retreated to reveal the sun. It shone over the damaged Moominvalley, making the hailstones that still littered the ground glitter like jewels. 

As the children walked along, gaping at the crushed plants and the broken windows, Moomin spotted a blob of purple sprawled under a tree. 

“Look, it’s the hemulen!” 

He and the others crowded around the old botanist; Mr. Hemulen was covered in welts and bruises, and it looked as though he had been crying. 

“Little My, you run ahead and tell Mamma and Pappa!” Snorkmaiden commanded. For once, Little My didn’t argue, sprinting as quickly as her feet would carry her. The other three gingerly picked up the Hemulen and began making their way toward the Moominhouse. 

“Mr. Hemulen!” Moominpappa ran out to help, closely followed by Little My. 

The hemulen was mumbling under his breath, “everything was destroyed...everything destroyed...”

“The hailstones destroyed Mr. Hemulen’s flower garden and the greenhouse, Pappa!” 

“Oh, how sad.” Moominpappa directed the children to bring Mr. Hemulen into the house. Once he was laid safety on the sofa, and Moominmamma had begun attending to his bruises, Moomin and Pappa headed out to Mr. Hemulen’s house in order to assess the damage. 

As they approached, however, Moomin spotted a pointy hat in the remains of the greenhouse. He felt his stomach flip. 

“Come on, it’s for Mr. Hemulen,” he thought to himself. With a deep breath, Moomin pushed forward to join his father and Snufkin in the garden. 

“What a sight. Is there any way of restoring it?” Pappa was wondering. 

“I’d say it’s impossible, Moominpappa.” 

“If we don’t do something, I doubt if the hemulen will ever recover!” 

“We could replant the flower garden,” Moomin suggested, cradling a crushed tulip in his paws. “At least it would be a start.” 

Snufkin looked thoughtful. “It’s true, we could grow some sort of flowers. But as you know, the hemulen has collected plants from all over the world. They’re irreplaceable!”

“I know.” Suddenly, Moomin’s face lit up. “We’ll do it by magic!”

“Magic?”

The troll nodded vigorously. “I’m sure the witch could do something to help us!”

“I don’t think she’s that clever,” Snufkin snarked. 

Despite everything, Moomin let out a snicker as he remembered all of the ridiculous things the witch had done since coming to Moominvalley—the explosions, the accidents with her broom, the potion mix-ups. Snufkin grinned at him, and for a second, things were back to normal. 

“Well, there’s no harm in asking her!” 

“I suppose you’re right.” The vagabond ran over to his side. “Let’s go.” 

All of a sudden, Moomin felt weird all over again. Snufkin was several feet away from him, but even that seemed far too close. Didn’t he realize that Pappa was right there, watching them?

Moomin took a step back. “Um, you don’t have to come with me, Snufkin.” 

“Do you remember the way through the Forest of Witches?” 

“Oh, I guess not,” Moomin sighed. “All right then, let’s go.” 

With that, the two set off into the forest. The quiet that settled over them as they walked wasn’t nearly as comfortable this time. 

“Moomin.” For once, Snufkin was the first to break the silence. The troll didn’t respond, keeping his eyes on the path ahead. 

“Moomin, about yesterday—“

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Moomin cut him off. 

“Can’t you just tell me what’s wrong? I don’t know how to fix it if you won’t say anything.” 

Moomin groaned, burying his head in his paws. “Everything! That’s what’s wrong!”

“I don’t understand,” Snufkin said, exasperated. “You kissed me, I was just kissing back. Didn’t you want me to?”

“Shh! Not so loud!” Moomin looked around frantically, as if an audience could be hiding among the dense foliage. 

“Moomin, why are you so afraid of anyone finding out?”

The troll rounded on Snufkin and shouted, “I’m not like you! I can’t just not care about what anybody else thinks!”

Snufkin recoiled as though he’d been slapped. His expression made Moomin feel sick to his stomach. 

“Snufkin, I...I’m sorry—“

“Let’s just get to the witch’s house,” Snufkin mumbled, turning away. Swallowing tears, Moomin followed him to the cottage in the woods. 

———————

While the witch explained that it was beyond her powers to repair the damage, she did manage to help after all—albeit grumpily—by contacting the hobgoblin for them. That evening, they spotted him silhouetted against the orange sky, riding on his panther and wearing his magical top hat. Moomin, Pappa, Snorkmaiden, Little My, and Snufkin gathered on the veranda to meet him; Mamma stayed inside, busy tending to Mr. Hemulen. 

“I understand I have been summoned,” the Hobgoblin’s voice boomed. 

“Yes, we need your help, Mr. Hobgoblin,” Moominpappa began to explain. 

“One minute.” The hobgoblin looked over them with an icy glare. “I am not the kind of person who takes kindly to being summoned by anyone, my good man.” 

“Of course not,” Pappa chuckled nervously. “We’re very sorry, sir, but these are extreme circumstances.” 

“No one else can help us,” Snufkin piped up. 

“But you performed such incredible things before, Mr. Hobgoblin!” Moomin finished. 

“There was a reason for it,” he said dismissively. “You had done me a great service.” 

“Can’t we do you another service?”

“No, no. You could not possibly...”

Squaring his shoulders, Moomin stepped forward to face the hobgoblin. “We could try! Couldn’t you at least tell us what it is that you want?”

“Whatever for?”

“Because it is so important to us that we earn your help.” 

The hobgoblin stared down at him for a long moment. 

“Oh, very well then.” He looked up into the sky, his strange grey eyes filled with longing. “It was through you that I got ahold of the King’s Ruby before. Now I’m looking for another: a most amazing emerald that once belonged to the queen.”

Moomin’s ears shot up. He couldn’t keep himself from looking at Snufkin. 

“The emerald...” 

The hobgoblin rounded on Moomin. “You have heard of it?”

“We found it, sir!” 

His eyes flashed. “Where is it?”

Moomin gulped. Noticing his sudden distress, Snufkin answered for him, “I’m afraid Stinky has it now. He—“ The vagabond glanced at Moomin out of the corner of his eye. “He bullied us into giving it up.” 

“Hmph,” grunted the hobgoblin. He turned to the woods and mumbled something under his breath. Suddenly, with a wave of his arm, Stinky was dragged from the forest by an invisible hand, the emerald clutched in his paws. 

“Hey, what’s the big idea?!” 

“I desire that emerald, little creature.” The hobgoblin loomed over the tiny creep. 

“Yeah?” Stinky clutched the gem tighter in his grubby paws. “Well, maybe I’ll be willing to give it to you—for a price!”

The hobgoblin nodded. “The young moomin mentioned a hemulen whose garden was destroyed. I will repair it in exchange for the emerald.” 

“What do I care about the hemulen’s weeds? Nah, if you want this rock, you’re going to have to pay it’s weight in gold!” 

“Hmm. Very well,” the hobgoblin clapped his hands, and a bag of gold coins appeared. 

Stinky’s eyes bulged. “Hey, wait a minute! I didn’t know you could make gold appear, just like that!” 

“The emerald,” commanded the hobgoblin, holding out his hand. 

Stinky only cackled. “Well gee, I’m afraid my fee has gone up.” 

“I grow weary of your greediness, little beast.” The air suddenly grew thicker, taking on a faint hint of smoke. 

Nervously, Moominpappa cleared his throat. “Say, Moomin, didn’t you mention that you and Snufkin found the emerald?”

“Um, yes Pappa,” Moomin answered hesitantly. 

“Well then, I should think it’s still yours to trade, not Stinky’s.” 

Stinky stamped his paws in the dirt. “Wait, that’s not fair! They gave it to me!” 

“It was hardly fair of you to force us to let you have it!” Snufkin argued. 

The hobgoblin raised a hand, silencing everyone. He got on one knee to look Moomin and Snufkin in the eye. “Children, would you give me the emerald?” 

“Yes,” both boys said in unison. 

With that one word, the emerald flew out of Stinky’s paws and into the Hobgoblin’s waiting hand. “The Queen’s Emerald...and it’s all mine,” he breathed. He swept the jewel under his cloak, and the green glow was snuffed out. 

“Now, I shall grant your request.” The hobgoblin reached into his cloak and pulled out a small pouch. He took out a big handful of dust, and with a deep breath, he blew it into the wind. The dust swirled through the evening breeze toward Mr. Hemulen’s house. As it flew, all of the flowers it passed seemed to stand up a little straighter and bloom a little brighter. 

“You will find that every plant in his garden is growing bigger and stronger than ever before.” 

Moomin let out a cheer. “Yippee! Thank you, Mr. Hobgoblin!” Behind him, his friends began whooping and cheering as well. 

“Hey!” The harsh cry tore through everyone’s jubilation, and all eyes went to Stinky. The little creep had his arms crossed. “We made a deal, Moomin! I only agreed keep your nasty little secret for the emerald.” His scowl changed into a sinister smile. “Now that this guy’s got it, I don’t see any reason to keep my mouth shut!” 

Moomin’s blood went cold. 

“Secret? Moomin, what’s he talking about?” Snorkmaiden asked innocently. 

“Oh, you’re about to find out,” Stinky snickered. He bounced over to the veranda, posing as if he were a famous actor performing to a spellbound audience. With a cackle, he shouted, “I saw Moomin and Snufkin kiss!”

The words seemed to echo around the valley, as loud as fireworks. Moomin’s mouth dropped open, but no words came out. He couldn’t speak. He couldn’t breathe. 

“Moomin?”

The sound of his name brought Moomin out of his trance. Tears started streaming down his face, and he ran. 

“Moomin, wait!” Snufkin called after him. The troll didn’t stop; he kept stumbling along, barely able to see through his tears, until he finally tripped and collapsed in a small copse of trees. Too out of breath to stand, he curled into a ball on the ground and sobbed. 

“Oh...oh, Moomin.” Snufkin reached out a paw to stroke the fluffy white fur of his friend’s back, but he forced himself to stop, and ended up just hovering awkwardly over the distraught moomin. 

“Ahem.” The cough startled the boys, and they turned to see the hobgoblin standing nearby, looking incredibly uncomfortable. “I hope you will pardon my intrusion.”

Confused and more than a little irritated, Snufkin asked, “is something wrong, Mr. Hobgoblin? Why are you here?” 

He shifted uneasily. “Well, to be honest, I do not feel as though I have fully repaid you for your service. The two of you found the emerald, but I have only granted one wish.” 

“You mean, there’s still a wish left?” 

“That is correct, little one.” 

After a long look at Moomin’s tear-streaked face, Snufkin stood up to face the hobgoblin. “Sir, that secret wasn’t Stinky’s to tell. Could you make it so everyone forgets what he said, and that he forgets he ever even saw us?” 

Moomin stared up at Snufkin in shock. Before he could say anything, however, the hobgoblin nodded and snapped his fingers. 

“It is done.”

“Thank you, sir.” 

With that, the hobgoblin mounted his panther and took off, riding into the orange evening sky. 

“There,” Snufkin declared, making Moomin jump. “No one but us knows, now. And no one ever needs to know again.” 

“Snufkin...?”

“Please just tell me one thing, Moomin. Are you really that ashamed of me?” The vagabond’s voice broke as he asked. He turned, and Moomin could see heartbreak on his face. 

“What?” The word came out as a gasp. 

“I was so happy when you kissed me, I felt like I could fly. I thought...I hoped we could be together.” Snufkin explained, roughly wiping his eyes. “But then this whole time, you’ve acted like it was a mistake.” 

“Oh, Snufkin!” Moomin wrapped his arms around the other boy and held him tight, rocking them both from side to side. “I do want to be with you, I really do. I was—I am afraid of letting everyone know that I kissed a boy. But it’s not because it was you in particular, I promise!” Letting go of Snufkin, Moomin covered his face with his paws. “Ugh, I should have told you that from the beginning. Snufkin, I’m so sorry.” 

Snufkin wiped away the last of his tears. “I still don’t understand, though. No one in Moominvalley has been angry about Mumble kissing Too-Ticky and the inspector, or Thingumy kissing Bob. Surely they wouldn’t say anything mean to you and me, either.” 

“I guess,” Moomin mumbled. “But it’s not just that.”

“Can you explain it to me, then? Please?”

The troll let out a heavy sigh. “Mamma and Pappa have always talked about they hope I’ll find a nice girl and get married one day, and live in a Moominhouse of my own. If I told them I might want to marry a nice boy instead, well...” Moomin’s voice caught in his throat. “I don’t think they’d be angry, but I’d always worry they were secretly disappointed in me.” 

After a moment of contemplative silence, Snufkin asked, “could you tell them what you just told me?” 

“Huh?”

“It wasn’t fair of them to make you feel like you didn’t have a choice in who you love, whether they meant to or not,” Snufkin shook his head sadly. “But Moomin, Mamma and Pappa care about you. They’ll understand, and I’m sure they’ll be happy for you no matter what.” 

“You really think so?”

“I’m positive.” 

Moomin felt one of the knots in his chest loosen, and a ghost of a smile appeared on his face. It faded a second later, however, as he remembered, “it’s not just them, though. There’s Snorkmaiden to think of.” 

“Yes, there is.” 

“Do you think it would hurt her feelings, to learn I want to date someone else for real?” Moomin wondered nervously. 

“It’s hard to know, Moomin. But either way, it’s much better if she hears about it from us, and not from somebody else. She deserves our honesty.” 

“Us?” Moomin echoed. “You would help me talk to her?” 

Snufkin paused a moment, finding the right words. “Moomin, you were right about me before. I’m used to just living life how I see fit, and ignoring people’s disapproval. But you’re a part of this, too, and I’m sorry for forgetting that.” He reached out and gently took the troll’s paws. “I do care about what you think, Moomin. So if getting everyone to accept us is important to you, then I’ll be right there beside you to help.” 

“Thank you, Snufkin. If you’re with me, then I can do it. I can tell people that we’re dating.” Suddenly, Moomin let out a giggle. “Oh my, we’re really dating!” 

“We are,” Snufkin affirmed, chuckling a bit himself. 

“Well, um, can I kiss you again?”

Instead of answering, the vagabond simply leaned forward and pressed his lips to Moomin’s snout. The troll blushed, but he quickly recovered and nuzzled his snout under Snufkin’s nose. He wrapped his arms around the other boy’s waist, marveling in how delicate Snufkin’s little kisses were; it felt like flower petals landing on his face. 

When they finally separated, Moomin sighed and admitted, “it’s still a bit scary.” 

“It is,” Snufkin agreed. “But we’ll be fine, so long as we’re together.” 

**Author's Note:**

> I left this open-ended, but I always imagined that Moominmamma and Moominpappa would be delighted for the two. They would end up having a long chat with Moomin later, and apologize for making him feel like dating boys wasn't an option.  
> Snorkmaiden doesn't know how to react at first. She spends a lot of time by herself for a week or so, trying to figure out how she feels. By the end, she finds she's happy for Moomin and Snufkin, and also relieved for herself; she never realized how much pressure she felt to eventually end up with Moomin or another boy, before. Also, once Snorkmaiden knows that dating girls is an option, she turns her attention to a certain tiny redhead (wink wonk).


End file.
